Restaurant Thian Hoe is one of the famous restaurants in Gurun, Kedah. It is located right alongside the main trunk road, beside a Shell station and not very far away from the foothill of Mount Jerai.

It is mainly famous for it's Duck Soup Kuey Tiow which is served in the mornings right up to lunch. As we were in the vicinity today, we decided to drop by for lunch but once we arrived here, we got to know that that dish was sold out for the day.

Once we were told that, we then asked the boss what else they serve and he mentioned that they do all the usual Chinese dishes as well. We decided to go for that then. We went through a few of the items we wished to order and off he was. He also informed us that usually the Duck Soup Kuey Tiow is sold out by about 12.30 pm and we had only arrived here at about 2 pm. That is why the restaurant seems a little empty at this time. Right after leaving us, he then went into the kitchen which is open air in concept and did the cooking himself. Of course, there were many there who were helping him with the preparations. Within a short while, the dishes started arriving.

For a small town, the fish is definitely not cheap but I still think that it is okay. The preparation was also slightly different compared to the type we get in Central Peninsular Malaysia. There were loads of pickled vegetables on the fish which I found to be unique as well. As for the taste, the fish did score well. It was well cleaned and did not have the usual smell. It could have been fried to a little more crisp level but still this was good enough. Definitely a different style of preparation. I would rate this dish at 8/10 .

The next dish that we ordered was the above Claypot Tofu. This is the small version and is surely sufficient for three pax. I would say that this dish was very well done. Everything was absolutely perfect and there is no room for me to comment at all. I would rate this dish at 10/10 .

The above Kangkung Belacan was absolutely heavenly. The Belacan paste was of a good quality and fresh and he had sparingly used it in the dish. It was also spiced well and there were loads of sliced chicken meat in the dish. This practice of putting chicken into this dish was also something unique that I had observed here only. I would again rate this dish at 10/10 .

As there were only two of us, the above dishes were more than enough and I too needed to keep myself awake as I was driving onwards to Kulim. If you happen to be in Gurun, do give this restaurant a try and it is worth while the effort of finding this restaurant. Do use the GPS coordinates as the address may be difficult to search. Two key landmarks here are the Shell Station and the Foothill of Mount Jerai and you should not miss this place.